Plug and socket connector arrangement with plug and socket mating slider

ABSTRACT

A plug and socket connector arrangement with a shaped plug and socket mating slider ( 1 ). Two parallel arms ( 3 ) grips one of the complementary parts ( 12 ) of the arrangement in order to draw it to the second complementary part ( 14 ) of the connector by actuating a guide slot ( 2 ) and a sliding block arrangement ( 13 ). The plug and socket mating slider ( 1 ) is led to a guide groove ( 10 ) in the connector arrangement, along which are arranged stopping faces ( 7 ) against which push the front faces ( 6 ) of the arms ( 3 ), provided that one of the complementary parts ( 12 ) of the connector is not inserted between the plug and socket connector mating slider ( 1 ). The complementary part ( 12 ) of the connector spreads apart the arms ( 3 ) in the process of its insertion between the arms ( 3 ) in such a way that the front faces ( 6 ) of the arms ( 3 ) are able to be moved sideways past the stopping faces ( 7 ) into their final position.

This application claims the benefit of the earlier filed InternationalApplication No. PCT/EP00/00020, International Filing Date, Jan. 4, 2000,which designated the United States of America, and which internationalapplication was published under PCT Article 21(2) in English as WOPublication No. WO 00/41273.

The present invention concerns a plug and socket connector arrangementaccording to preamble of the first claim. Such plug and socket connectorarrangements are intended for multipolar plug and socket connectors,where even the interconnection of the complementary plug and socketparts requires a certain amount of effort. A plug and socket matingslider makes it possible for the effort which must be expended, to bespread over a longer distance so that the interconnection of thecomplementary plug and socket parts of the connector is made easier. Itcan happen in assembling such a plug and socket connector or inre-inserting previously separated complementary plug and socket partsthat the plug and socket mating slider is pushed into its final positionwithout one complementary part of the connector engaging in the guideslot provided for it and without being drawn into the othercomplementary part of the connector.

In this position, it is no longer possible for the complementary partsof the connector to be interconnected in such a way as to give a correctconnection.

The present invention was designed to improve the plug and socketconnector arrangement of the type described at the outset in such a wayas to prevent the unintentional insertion of the plug and socket matingslider without a secure connection becoming established.

This task is solved in accordance with the claim and preferredembodiment forms of the present invention are specified in thesubsidiary claims. The present invention is based on the principle thatthe plug and socket mating slider is allowed to run in an intermediateposition against a stopping face, as long as one of the complementaryparts of the connector is not inserted to such a point that the saidcomplementary part of the connector can be drawn into the othercomplementary part of the connector by means of the surface guide slots.This only happens when one complementary part of the connector is drawnsufficiently close to the other complementary part so that the arms ofthe plug and socket mating slider are spread apart, enabling their frontfaces to be inserted further past the stopping faces.

This ensures that the complete unintentional insertion of the plug andsocket mating slider without an appropriate complementary part of theconnector is safely prevented.

The invention will now be explained more fully by means of a descriptionof an example of an embodiment which makes reference to the drawings. Inthese drawings:

FIG. 1 shows the plan view and the perspective view of a preferedembodiment example of a plug and socket mating slider,

FIG. 2 shows in plan view, in side view and in perspective detail view,the arrangement of the stopping faces in the complementary part of theconnector,

FIG. 3 shows two perspective views of a connector module with asecondary locking device,

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of a connector module with a separateassembly frame.

The plug and socket mating slider 1 has guide slots 2 in two arms 3which are connected at one end to an actuating surface 4. On the frontfaces 5 of the arms of the plug and socket mating slider 1, stoppingsurfaces 6 are arranged on the lower edge, crosswise to the direction ofinsertion which, when the plug and socket mating slider is inserted intothe corresponding guide grooves in one of the complementary parts of theconnector, push against a stopping face or shoulder 7 which prevents theplug and socket mating slider from being pushed into its final positionwithout the complementary part of the connector.

In the perspective view of the plug and socket mating slider in FIG. 1are visible the chamfered upper edges 8 whose function is explainedbelow in greater detail. FIG. 2a shows the plan view of a housing whichthe plug and socket mating slider is pushed into. It is possible to seethe stopping shoulders 7 flanked on their inner faces by the chamferedguiding faces or surfaces 9 which lead the front faces 6 precisely ontothe stopping faces 7. FIG. 2b shows the perspective view of a detail ofthe stopping shoulder 7 and the guide surface 9. It can be seen thatbetween the stopping face 7 and a housing wall 11, there runs a groove10, along which it is possible to push the appropriate arm of the plugand socket mating slider further in the direction of its final positionpast the stopping face 7, when the arm has been pushed sideways awayfrom the stopping face 7. This takes place by means of the insertion ofone complementary part 12 of the connector as it is shown, for example,in FIG. 3. This complementary part 12 of the connector shows slidingblocks 13 which are inserted into the corresponding guide slots 2 in thearms of the plug and socket mating slider. When the sliding blocks 13are inserted into the opening of the guide slots 2, the arms of the plugand socket mating slider are spread apart because the width of one ofthe complementary parts of the connector is somewhat greater than thedistance between the two arms of the plug and socket mating slider 1.The spreading apart takes place by means of the sliding along the lowerlongitudinal edges 14 of one complementary part of the connector on thechamfered upper edges 8 of the arms of the plug and socket mating slider1. FIG. 3 further shows a secondary locking device 15 which is insertedinto a slot 16 specially provided for this purpose, in order to lock thecontacts in their cavity 17 into their final position.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment, in which a frame 18 receives onecomplementary part 12 of the connector and is inserted together with theother complementary part 19. It can be seen from FIG. 4 that there thesecondary locking device 15 is inserted completely. If this is not thecase, the complementary part 12 of the connector cannot be insertedcompletely into the cavity 20 specially provided for this purpose in theframe 18, whereby an interconnection of connectors which are notsecondarily locked is not possible. In the embodiment shown at thebottom of FIG. 4, two complementary connector components which arelinked together by a bridge are inserted into an appropriately shapedportion of the frame 18. This portion of the frame 18 is able to beinserted without the spreading apart of the arms of the plug and socketmating slider 1 and has open side flanks in its lower half so that inthe process of insertion of the complementary parts 12 of the connectorits sliding blocks can be inserted into the corresponding guide slots 2and its edges 14 are able to spread apart the arms of the plug andsocket mating slider 1. The embodiment shown provides a separate frame18 and a further embodiment can also be contemplated, in which the frame18 is integral with the complementary part 12 of the connector.

The sliding blocks 13 have, as can best be seen from FIG. 3, across-section whose form approximates to that of a rounded cuboid. Thelongitudinal central axis of these sliding blocks is inclined at thesame angle as the guide slot, so that the surface of the sliding blocksmakes available the largest possible bearing area to the inner walls ofthe guide slots.

So, according to the invention, the plug and socket connectorarrangement can be operated easily and with only little effort beingspent. Furthermore, the said plug and socket connector arrangement issafer to handle since wrong operation in terms of premature insertioncan be prevented as early as the assembly or interconnection withoutactuating the secondary locking device or locking the plug and socketmating slider in its final position be fore a complementary part of theconnector has been inserted. The embodiment example described earlieronly serves to illustrate the invention and is not to be understood asbeing limiting in any way.

What is claimed is:
 1. A plug and socket connector arrangement with aU-shaped plug and socket mating slider (1) which grips one complementarypart (12) of the connector by means of two parallel arms (3) in order todraw it into a second complementary part (14) of the connector by meansof actuating a guide slot and a sliding block arrangement (13), whereinthe plug and socket mating slider (1) in the plug and socket connectorarrangement is led into a guide groove (10) along which stopping faces(7) are arranged and against which the front faces (6) of arms (3) push,as long as one complementary part (12) of the connector is not insertedbetween arms (3) of the plug and socket mating slider and thecomplementary part (12) of the connector, and when the complementarypart is being introduced between the arms (3) of the plug and socketmating slider (1), the arms are spread apart in such a way that thefront faces (6) of the arms (3) are able to be moved sideways past thestopping faces (7) as far as their final position.
 2. A plug and socketconnector arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the arms (3) of theplug and socket mating slider (1) are chamfered on their inner sides (8)where the complementary part (12) of the connector is introduced betweenthe arms (3).
 3. A plug and socket connector arrangement according toclaim 1, wherein the stopping faces have a shoulder which is vertical tothe direction of insertion of the plug and socket mating slider and achamfered guide surface (9) in the direction of insertion.
 4. The plugand socket connector arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the plugand socket mating slider (1) have guide slots and that one of thecomplementary parts (12) of the connector has sliding blocks (13). 5.The plug and socket connector arrangement according to claim 1, whereinthe connector has a frame (18) into which the complementary part (12) ofthe connector is inserted together with a secondary locking device (15).6. The plug and socket connector arrangement according to claim 5wherein the frame (18) prevents, by the stopping face, the insertion ofthe module which does not have a fully inserted secondary locking device(15).
 7. The plug and socket connector arrangement according to claim 1,wherein the plug and socket mating slider has guide slots with walls oneither side of the guide slots and the sliding blocks (13) are of ashape such that their overall surface makes available the largestpossible bearing surface on the walls of the guide slot (2).
 8. The plugand socket connector arrangement according to claim 7, wherein thecross-section of the sliding blocks (13) has the shape of a roundedcuboid with the same inclination as that of the guide slot (2) whoselongitudinal sides are parallel to the. walls of the guide slot (2).